The Drumheller Valley’s tourism industry has certainly turned heads and stopped cars this season and local operators are being recognized for their efforts.
Last Week The Drumheller Mail informed readers that the Canadian Badland Passion Play were nominated for an Alberta Tourism “ALTO“ Award in the Alberta Pride category. It turns out they are not the only one.
The Atlas Coal Mine and the Belles of the Badlands are also nominated. The Belles of the Badlands are nominated in the Marketing Partnership category and the Atlas Coal Mine will be going head to head with Passion Play in Alberta Pride Category.
Linda Digby, Executive Director for the Atlas Coal Mine says they are really excited to be nominated. Over the last few years thee Atlas Coal Mine has seen impressive growth in its visitation. This growth is not coincidental, it was mapped out through its Tunnel Vision campaign.
Tunnel Vision laid out a plan for developing and maintaining the site to increase its offerings for tourists, and in turn increase visitation.
To that end, it created the underground experience that allows guided tours through the working right up to the mouth of the mine. It also continued its work on the building the narrow gauge train tracks to offer rides in a coal car as part of its tours.
“We are really excited to see Tunnel Vision roll out the way it was intended to,” said Digby.
According to Travel Alberta, The Alto Alberta Pride Award was created to recognize a business or organization that captures the essence of the Alberta experience. What is the Alberta experience? It could be what your guests do when they arrive or how they feel when they leave. It could be a vacation experience that’s unique to the province or it may be that your guests perceive Alberta as a very special place
The Belles of the Badlands are nominated in the Marketing Partnership Category. According to Travel Alberta, The Alto Marketing Partnership Award recognizes partnerships of two or more organizations exhibiting exceptional achievement in tourism marketing and who demonstrate the success of working together.
The Belles of the Badlands are a collection of women from all points in the Badlands. They have the aim of demonstrating and showcasing life in the area from a historical women’s perspective. Often in period pioneer attire, they are entertaining and strong proponents of the area. This summer they were part of a pilot bus tour designed to showcase the valley. Members of the Belles of the Badlands from the area include Linda Digby, Linda Miller, B.J. Janzen of Rosebud and Shelley Rymal.
The Alto Awards will be presented at the Travel Alberta Conference on October 22.